PE Weekly: Services Businesses Lead M&A Activity
From parcel delivery to accounting, services come into focus for M&A dealmakers
While it was a particularly slow week for middle-market M&A announcements, recent deals were geared towards the services space, including parcel delivery, accounting and engineering. Despite the slump, new fundraising announcements signal more dealmaking ahead, with TJC raising $6.85 billion for its latest fund. Read more on the latest in middle-market M&A below.
Platform Investments
H.I.G. Takes DX Group Private. Alternative asset management firm H.I.G. Capital announced its acquisition of DX Group, which provides business and residential delivery services in the U.K. and Ireland. The investment takes the company private; DX had previously been listed on the London Stock Exchange. The investment was made for about $390 million, a press release said.
Add-Ons
Unity Partner’s NDH Acquires Jain & Jain. NDX Advisors, a Chicago-based accounting firm and portfolio company of private equity firm Unity Partners, has announced its acquisition of Houston-based accounting firm Jain & Jain. In a statement, NDH CEO and co-founder Jeremy Dubow said, “This transaction complements NDH’s core service offering and allows us to add talented professionals to our growing team.”
Blackford Capital’s PACIV Acquires Data Science Automation. Lower middle-market private equity firm Blackford Capital announced its first add-on acquisition to the PACIV Platform. PACIV, a provider of industrial process automation and systems integration, acquired Data Science Automation, an automated engineering services and training business. The company helps clients drive digital transformation and automate key processes including manufacturing, laboratory and test systems.
New State Capital’s PAX Services Acquires Roofing Business. PAX Services Group, a roofing services company and portfolio company of New State Capital Partners, has acquired roofing services business Cram Roofing, according to a press release from the middle-market private equity firm. Cram provides reroofing, maintenance and emergency repair services and is based in San Antonio, Texas.
Exits
Littlejohn to Exit Water Works Supplier to Core & Main. Investment firm Littlejohn announced in a press release this week it has entered into an agreement to sell portfolio company Dana Kepner Company, a water works supplier serving contractors and municipalities. Critical infrastructure product distributor Core & Main will acquire the company. While with Littlejohn, Dana Kepner completed two add-on acquisitions and nearly doubled its revenue.
One Equity Partners Exits IT Services Business to Strategic. One Equity partners, a middle-market private equity firm, announced this week its successful sale of IT services company Computer Design and Integration (CDI) to strategic acquirer AHEAD. OEP first acquired the business in 2020. AHEAD provides digital platforms for data, AI and software development, according to an announcement sent to Middle Market Growth.
Fundraising
Phoenix Merchant Raises $900 Million for Private Credit. Phoenix Merchant Partners, a middle-market investment firm, has announced the launch of its private credit strategy, raising $900 million. Reports in BNN Bloomberg said the firm will focus on lending to non-sponsored businesses across the industrials, telecom, healthcare and energy transition industries. In a separate press release, Phoenix Merchant said it had completed its first private credit transaction, providing financing to non-catastrophic property and casualty reinsurance service provider Gryphon Holdings.
TJC Raises $6.85 Billion for Fund VI. Middle-market private equity firm TJC LP announced the close of it’s the Resolute Fund VI with $6.85 billion in capital commitments. Investors closed the fund above its initial target of $6 billion, according to a recent press release. TJC will deploy the capital for acquisitions across the consumer, healthcare, industrials logistics and supply chain, technology and infrastructure sectors, among others.
Insights
ACG Miami Network held its first official happy hour on Jan. 24 at Bayshore Club in Coconut Grove. More than 40 professionals across private equity, law, accounting, banking, healthcare, investment advisory and wealth management, among other sectors, attended.
“Support for ACG Miami has been enormously positive in the early going, and we have ambitious goals for the network,” Trivest Partners chief marketing officer Ryan Parker tells Middle Market Growth. “We all believe Miami can become a point of strength for ACG Global, particularly as its base of M&A professionals continues to grow and the door further opens to opportunities in Latin America.”
ACG Miami is a network of ACG South Florida.
Middle Market Growth is produced by the Association for Corporate Growth. To learn more about the organization and how to become a member, visit www.acg.org.
